Earthquake hits Bohol

[jadegil6]

A 7.2 earthquake has just hit Bohol, Philippines, which is an island province between Cebu and Mindanao. Time is on Tuesday morning, October 15, 2013.

Early reports are of widespread damage. There are no tsunami warnings at this time. It's epicenter depth is listed at 35 miles (56 km), and near to the town of Baliliphan, Bohol. This is not that far from Tagbilaran City, the capitol.

[mystic]

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Michael, are you still sure you want to retire to the Phils?

[jadegil6]

Kind of makes a man think twice, that's for sure. That hit very close to where I was going to start out my retirement years. Pretty scary stuff! I have many friends around Bohol and Cebu who I am worried about, especially in Bohol since there is very little information coming out of there, and most of the electrical power is down. About all I can do is to continue to pray for them.

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Sto. Nino Church in Cebu City (Above)
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List of quake and aftershocks (Above)
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400 year old tower in Bohol (Above)

[jadegil6]

A news report by Associated Press says that there have been 19 aftershocks within 500 km of the epicenter of the 7.2 quake in Bohol that have measured 6 or above. One of my friends in Cebu tells me that there are many aftershocks continuing as I write this post. It is about 2:25 AM there, and many people are having a frightening night.
Latest report is of 93 dead, and rescue efforts continue through the night as many are still trapped inside collapsed buildings. Many bridges are out, and highways are buckled and impassable, hampering rescue efforts. I have read three different reports of where the epicenter was located. One said , and another carmen, and the third said Catigbian. I think all three are relatively in the same area of Bohol. There is a waterway (straight) between Bohol and Cebu, and it is not that far from one island to the other, only about 35 miles (56 km), and this is why there was so much damage in Cebu City, which is a heavily populated city with close to 3 million residents.

[lyrehc]

I'm not from cebu but the earth quake also scare us in bacolod,early in the morning i was having my breakfast when i feel strange i thought i was dreaming but when i told my mom why everything is moving then i thought earth quake!!!!I wake up everyone and we went outside where there is safe...

[jadegil6]

I am glad that you and your family were not close to the epicenter, and that you did not experience the destruction and terror that the citizens of Bohol, Cebu and Siquijor island did. I hope you never have to experience that.
The latest news :
A powerful earthquake killed at least 110 people in the Philippines Tuesday as it generated landslides that buried homes, triggered terrified stampedes and destroyed historic churches. Loon is about 20 kilometers (12 miles) from where the epicenter of the quake struck at just after 8:00 AM (0000 GMT). It faces a narrow strait of water, with Cebu about 25 kilometers away on the other side. Authorities said the death toll could still climb, with officials struggling to assess the extent of the damage in the worst-hit areas of Bohol where roads remained impassable and power was cut at nightfall.
Bohol police chief Senior Superintendent Dennis Agustin said one of the worst affected areas was the coastal town of Loon, where at least 18 people were killed by landslides that buried houses along large stretches of highway.
Ten churches, some of which have crucial links to the earliest moments of Spanish colonial and Catholic conquest in the 1500s, were also badly damaged on Cebu and Bohol.
The limestone bell tower of the Philippines’ oldest church, Cebu’s Basilica Minore del Santo Nino (Sto. Nino), was in ruins.
Other limestone churches that were built in the 1700s and 1800s on Bohol had crumbled completely, prompting grieving for the loss of some of the Philippines’ most important cultural treasures.
Aside from its beaches, Bohol is famous for its more than 1,000 small limestone “Chocolate Hills” that turn brown during the dry season. That entire area is severely damaged. There were no reports of foreign tourists being killed anywhere in the disaster zone.

The deadliest recorded natural disaster in the Philippines occurred in 1976, when a tsunami triggered by a magnitude 7.9 earthquake devastated the Moro Gulf on the southern island of Mindanao. Between 5,000 and 8,000 people were killed, according to official estimates

The province of Siquijor has been placed under state of calamity, Governor Zaldy Villa said Wednesday.
Siquijor was one of the most devastated provinces during yesterday's magnitude 7.2 earthquake. The island province is located just across Bohol, where the epicenter of the major quake was recorded. Villa said the province's schools and other structures sustained cracks and may pose danger. A highway connecting the towns of Maria and Larena was also rendered impassable due to landslide. The port of Larena was also inaccessible due to damage. Classes in the entire province remain suspended as well.
Among the effects of the declaration of state of calamity are price control for basic commodities, granting of no-interest loans to affected residents, and appropriation calamity funds.

[jadegil6]

Photos of the falling of the bell tower at the Sto. Nino Catholic Church in Cebu City as it happened. I have been inside that church numerous times, accompanying friends to attend the Mass. The gate that is shown in the photos is one I have walked through as I entered and left the church's courtyard.
CLICK ON THE PICTURE TO SEE THE FULL PHOTO

As the earthquake started.

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As the bell tower fell.

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Oldest church in the Philippines built in the 1500's.

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The collapse in progress.

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Centuries old church tower falls.

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Sad to see this happening to such an historical building.

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The collapse of a national treasure.

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Sto. Nino Catholic Church

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Sto. Nino Church in Cebu City

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Near by is Magellan's Cross

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[crisipicada]

Uncle of my officemate living in Bohol, was one of the casualty. It saddened him a lot.

[jadegil6]

Sorry to hear about your office mate's loss.

Number of deaths from Tuesday's quake were on Bohol island, with 134, followed by Cebu island with nine and Siquijor with one.
(CNN reports 161 deaths with 149 of them in Bohol)

Officials said 23 people in Bohol were missing.

At least 291 people were injured.

The National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council said 20 bridges were impassable in Bohol and four roads were closed to traffic.

Landslides were reported in some areas. Nearly 3,000 houses were destroyed and another 16,000 were damaged in Bohol and Cebu.
12 of Bohol's 47 municipalities were without power, and authorities were predicting that it would be restored within a day or two.
More than 1,300 aftershocks had been recorded, 28 of which were felt. In all, 158,466 people were displaced, the government said. Nearly 100,000 of them were housed in 85 evacuation centers.

[red]

This is really sad news. I have a Filipina friend here that has relatives in Cebu. She needs prayer for them.